Taggart mines Florida for USF

Published: Wednesday, February 6, 2013 at 10:48 p.m.

Last Modified: Wednesday, February 6, 2013 at 10:48 p.m.

As the signing faxes poured in Wednesday, Willie Taggart engaged in a little area-code fun.

The South Florida head football coach gleefully tweeted the codes of the players who had committed to his Bulls’ program, and many of them shared the commonality of locale.

Florida. When he took the USF job back in December, above almost everything else, Taggart vowed to relentlessly mine the state for talent, an implication that the strategy hadn’t been effectively executed in the past.

As with any recruiting class, time will be the ultimate barometer, but on Wednesday, Taggart certainly bagged his share of Florida products.

Was his first class the best in the country? Of course not. How about the state? Nope to that as well, as if such an accomplishment even was remotely possible, given the timing of Taggart’s hire.

But if you’re into those bogus and self-serving ratings, Scout.com had his class ranked 61st in the country and fifth in the Big East, while Rivals.com ranked it 55th and 247sports.com 54th.

In the real world, Taggart and his staff aren’t fixated on four- and five-star recruits. What they seek are players who can develop in his system into this top-tier talent.

So come back in a couple of years to see if Manatee’s Derrick Calloway and Immokalee’s Deadrin Senat have become those bookend run stuffers so important in today’s college game.

Staying on the defensive side of the ball, the secondary has seemingly always been a Bulls’ concern. USF had just two interceptions last season.

To address this deficiency, Taggart signed six defensive backs, the best perhaps Miami Southridge’s Lamar Robbins.

Two years. By then, we should know.

Look on the other side of the ball, into the Bulls’ offensive backfield, for the contributions of Kissimmee Osceola running back Sta’fon McCray and Miami Northwestern’s Darius Tice.

Taggart’s offensive philosophy is steeped in running the football. McCray and Tice will be counted on to put this philosophy into action. And make it work.

The Tice signing was a Bulls’ coup. The player who rushed for 1,210 yards and 20 touchdowns last season had verbally committed to Cincinnati.

Words are one thing, deeds another. When the time came for Tice’s pen to meet paper, South Florida’s name was on it.

It’ll be fun watching former Booker High star Eric Mayes develop. In ESPN’s top 300 recruits, the defensive end was ranked 210th, the highest of any of USF’s signees.

Taggart can see it, even today — Calloway stuffing the run up the middle, Mayes swooping in off the edge to sack the quarterback.

Just not everything panned out to perfection. Former USF commitment Asiantii Woulard, a quarterback from Winter Park, spurned the Bulls for UCLA.

Palm Beach Dwyer defensive end/tight end Malik Brown had the Bulls in his final three, but ended up signing with Tennessee.

And on a live broadcast on ESPNU, Oakland Park Northeast wide receiver Stacy Coley teared up selecting the University of Miami.

<p>SARASOTA</p><p>As the signing faxes poured in Wednesday, Willie Taggart engaged in a little area-code fun.</p><p>The South Florida head football coach gleefully tweeted the codes of the players who had committed to his Bulls' program, and many of them shared the commonality of locale.</p><p>Florida. When he took the USF job back in December, above almost everything else, Taggart vowed to relentlessly mine the state for talent, an implication that the strategy hadn't been effectively executed in the past.</p><p>As with any recruiting class, time will be the ultimate barometer, but on Wednesday, Taggart certainly bagged his share of Florida products.</p><p>Was his first class the best in the country? Of course not. How about the state? Nope to that as well, as if such an accomplishment even was remotely possible, given the timing of Taggart's hire.</p><p>But if you're into those bogus and self-serving ratings, Scout.com had his class ranked 61st in the country and fifth in the Big East, while Rivals.com ranked it 55th and 247sports.com 54th.</p><p>In the real world, Taggart and his staff aren't fixated on four- and five-star recruits. What they seek are players who can develop in his system into this top-tier talent.</p><p>So come back in a couple of years to see if Manatee's Derrick Calloway and Immokalee's Deadrin Senat have become those bookend run stuffers so important in today's college game.</p><p>Staying on the defensive side of the ball, the secondary has seemingly always been a Bulls' concern. USF had just two interceptions last season.</p><p>To address this deficiency, Taggart signed six defensive backs, the best perhaps Miami Southridge's Lamar Robbins.</p><p>Two years. By then, we should know.</p><p>Look on the other side of the ball, into the Bulls' offensive backfield, for the contributions of Kissimmee Osceola running back Sta'fon McCray and Miami Northwestern's Darius Tice.</p><p>Taggart's offensive philosophy is steeped in running the football. McCray and Tice will be counted on to put this philosophy into action. And make it work.</p><p>The Tice signing was a Bulls' coup. The player who rushed for 1,210 yards and 20 touchdowns last season had verbally committed to Cincinnati.</p><p>Words are one thing, deeds another. When the time came for Tice's pen to meet paper, South Florida's name was on it.</p><p>It'll be fun watching former Booker High star Eric Mayes develop. In ESPN's top 300 recruits, the defensive end was ranked 210th, the highest of any of USF's signees.</p><p>Taggart can see it, even today — Calloway stuffing the run up the middle, Mayes swooping in off the edge to sack the quarterback.</p><p>Just not everything panned out to perfection. Former USF commitment Asiantii Woulard, a quarterback from Winter Park, spurned the Bulls for UCLA.</p><p>Palm Beach Dwyer defensive end/tight end Malik Brown had the Bulls in his final three, but ended up signing with Tennessee.</p><p>And on a live broadcast on ESPNU, Oakland Park Northeast wide receiver Stacy Coley teared up selecting the University of Miami.</p><p>Still, USF got its share. Willie Taggart, recruiter, now gets to become Willie Taggart, head coach. We're pretty sure he's pumped for the transition.</p>